Fruit, vegetable exports continue growth trend in two months

Vietnam exported 293,960 tonnes of fruits and vegetables worth US$620 million in the first two months of 2018, a year-on-year rise of 47 percent and 47.6 percent, respectively.

Dragon fruits for exports - Photo: VNA

Fruits made up 87 percent of the total value, according to General Department of Customs. China topped the list of importers with 79.54 percent of Vietnam’s fruit-vegetable market share, followed by the US (3 percent), Japan (2.9 percent), Thailand (1.4 percent) and Malaysia (1.2 percent). Most exported fruits and vegetables were crude products, accounting for more than 93 percent of the total export value. Meanwhile processed products comprised only 6.6 percent.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Vietnam earned a record US$3.45 billion from fruit and vegetable exports in 2017, up 40.5 percent from the previous year. China, Japan, the US and the Republic of Korea were the biggest importers of Vietnamese fruits and vegetables last year. Markets saw high growth were Japan (70.6 percent), the United Arab Emirates (57.4 percent) and China (54.9 percent).

The ministry said 2017 was a “bumper” year for Vietnamese fruits, with surging export turnover and entrance into many demanding markets. There is still potential for Vietnamese fruits and vegetables in the global market, which requires the country to focus on to processing and exploring new markets instead of traditional ones.